Chapter 46 It May Still Be Resurrected
February 13th midnight
Shen Kuo picked up the puppet and tried to put it on the horse, but the horse snorted in fear and moved to the side, apparently feeling some invisible fear.
"This animal is a little scared. I'd better go find a car. Anyway, this place is not far from Old Crow Lane."
Xu Chong dismounted, still a little frightened, and dared not approach the dead puppet, fearing that the other accomplices would emerge from the eaves. However, the surroundings were surprisingly quiet. A short heavy rain put out the fire, the thunder faded away, the strong wind stopped, and there was only the sound of water dripping from the eaves.
There was an overturned cart on the side of the road, no one knew who it belonged to, there was a stove and a cupboard on it, probably a food stall. It was conceivable that when the stall owner saw the puppet flying in the sky, he ran away without the cart or the people.
Xu Chong moved the stove and other miscellaneous items away and just pushed the cart over. He didn't dare touch the puppet, so Shen Kuo put the puppet on the cart. Then Shen Kuo rode the horse while he pushed the cart to the new base in Lao Ya Lane.
Until sunrise, the two men placed the grinning puppet on a table in the attic like an ancestral tablet, and then sat there watching blankly.
Shen Kuo sat closer, almost face to face. Xu Chong sat further back, his hand tightly gripping the hilt of the knife. Of course, he couldn't tell what it was. It was clearly a puppet. Shen Kuo wanted to take it apart and take a look, but then he felt that the timing was not right, as Bao Tu would surely come later. If he tore it apart now and couldn't put it back together, he wouldn't be able to see what it was.
At three quarters past noon, Bao Zheng, who received the news, came here in person.
He hurried upstairs, squatted a few feet away, and looked at the lifeless puppet in front of him for a long time. He hesitated for a moment before approaching. He reached out and touched the bottom of the puppet's nose, but felt that it was a bit silly to touch the puppet's breath to determine whether it was alive or dead. So he touched his forehead again, and it was not hot.
That thing just sat there stupidly, grinning foolishly, I'm afraid it is indeed dead. He flipped the puppet's eyelids again, and it was naturally movable, and the other joints could also be turned flexibly, it was indeed the work of the master Yu Hao.
"I remember Xu Chong handed over a document saying that the puppet lost by the Wood Spirit Class was two feet five or six inches long, less than three feet long. However, the one in front of me is clearly more than four feet long, almost the size of a child?"
Lao Bao also saw the problem at a glance.
"Mr. Bao, I have asked someone to find the leader of the wood spirit class and ask him to come and identify the identity," said Xu Chong.
"Cun Zhong, what do you think?" Lao Bao turned to Shen Kuo.
"I thought, if we ask the head of the Wood Elves to come and take a look, and he says yes or no, what will we do?"
"Well? If you have anything to say, just say it." Old Bao could hear the ulterior motive in Shen Kuo's words.
"My Lord, do you think that the puppet has grown taller after being coerced by the hat monster and turned into a sea of spirits ? That's why it's two feet taller?"
“This…” Lao Bao was speechless for a moment.
"If you think the puppet is just wood and won't grow up, then you don't need to hire the head of the wood spirit class. If you think it has become a spirit and has grown bigger, then it doesn't matter what the witness says."
"Haha, I know what you mean." Lao Bao clapped his hands and laughed, "Xu Chong, this place is hidden in the downtown area, so it's better not to spread the news. The leader of the Wood Spirit Class is no longer an important witness, so don't invite him."
"yes!"
Bao Longtu's words finally gave Shen Kuo great confidence. The idea he wanted to convey to Bao Longtu was: If you believe in common sense, this can't be the puppet from the beginning. No wooden lump can grow on its own. Bao Longtu was not as confused as Xu Chong.
"Cun Zhong, why don't you take it apart and take a look? Maybe there is something mysterious inside." Lao Bao showed his curiosity.
"My husband, I had this thought. However, although this thing could not have been made by Yu Hao, it is a family heirloom of the Yu family. It fits tightly together without any gaps that can be disassembled. I think it is not easy to disassemble. I want to use an axe or saw, but I am afraid of damaging the evidence."
"You must not use an axe or saw. I will be in the palace to see the emperor in a few days, and I may have to show evidence to the ministers in a day or two. You must know that we have not obtained much evidence since the hat monster case, and Shi Yaban has already said some angry words. This courtyard was given to us because of his favor. He has taken a lot of responsibility, and he must give some explanation to the emperor."
"I understand. I see there is not a single nail on this puppet. It is all connected with wooden wedges and mortise and tenon joints from the Yu family. It takes a long time to take it apart. I think we can ask Master Huailiang to take a look. He is proficient in all kinds of ingenious woodworking and has studied Yu Hao's "Wood Classic"."
"Okay, I chose this place because it's closer to Master Huailiang's shop. I also hope that Master Huailiang can give me some good advice, ah..."
Old Bao sighed for no reason and instantly seemed to have aged ten years.
"We are all dull students, unable to help the officials and ministers."
"It has nothing to do with you. But the case has become like this, and every word of the prophecy has come true. Everyone in the capital is terrified. I dare not sleep at night, for I am afraid that every time I open my eyes, another unexplainable strange thing will come to me..."
While he was talking, a messenger came in at the door, and Xu Chong went over to ask. Old Bao saw from afar that Xu Chong's expression changed slightly when he was talking to the spies, and he had a bad premonition. Since he took over this case, he was almost forced into a desperate situation. Although Shen Kuo and Huai Liang often found some tricks that could restore the opponent's tricks, and even Yang Wei De's deduction method had worked, the opponent's speed of asking questions was much faster than their speed of solving them, and the problems that needed to be solved at the moment were still piling up.
Seeing Xu Chong's expression change, Lao Bao guessed that something was wrong again.
Xu rushed over and clasped his fists: "My husband, this morning, five bodies were collected from the streets around Baifan Building."
"A corpse?" Lao Bao was shocked. "Did he die of starvation or freezing?"
"No, the body is completely charred and no human form can be discerned. The coroner believes that he was struck by lightning. However, there are still some points that cannot be determined, so the body list has not been filled out yet. It is best to examine it carefully again."
"Is the deceased in one place?"
"No, the five dead were separated by one or two streets. However, they were all not far from Baifan Building."
"This is impossible." Shen Kuo said in surprise.
"How is it impossible? There was clearly spring thunder last night, and didn't it strike this thing down?" Old Bao pointed at the puppet.
"I've only heard that lightning strikes only in one place. If five people were standing in one place, they might all die together. But how could it strike five people standing on the street?"
"But the 'Five Thunder Curse' in the nursery rhyme means there are also five dead people?" Xu Chong's words resonated with the other spies around him.
Bao Zheng shook his head helplessly. These days, whenever he thought he had a clue, something more daunting and bizarre would happen. Now that he had just picked up a puppet, another inexplicable strange thing happened.
"It's almost time for the morning court session. I'm about to go to the palace to see the emperor. Please do your best."
He patted Shen Kuo on the shoulder, then went downstairs sadly with his followers.
Shen Kuo and Xu Chong divided the work. Shen Kuo stayed to dismantle the puppet, while Xu Chong went to various places to bring back the corpses and then find some experienced coroners to see if there was any connection.
Before Xu Chong led his men away, he reminded Shen Kuo again to be careful, probably meaning to be careful of the puppet coming back to life. Shen Kuo ignored him and just laid the puppet flat on the table, intending to take it apart and take a look.
The attic he was in was very elegant, with windows on three sides and a staircase in the middle of the room. When the windows were opened, the light was excellent, and one could also see the surrounding scenery, whether it was the streets, rivers, or palaces. The peach trees in the courtyard were especially pleasing to the eye, as they were about to bloom.
There was a lingering smell of powder in the room, probably left by the concubine of the wealthy family who had lived here before. There were windows on three sides of the room, and paintings and calligraphy were hung on the wall without windows, but Shen Kuo had no mood to read them. There were also some powder boxes on the desk, which seemed to be left by the owner in a hurry when he fled. He did not move them as they were, and the house had to be returned to him in the same condition in the future.
He continued to look down at the puppet, trying to figure out how to open it, but gave up after a while. It was always difficult to open it without damaging it, and he didn't know when Master Huailiang would come.
Looking from the back of the puppet, there is a faint gap there, which shows that this piece can be removed. Judging from the weight, the puppet should be hollow because it is not as heavy as solid wood.
After thinking for a while, there was a commotion downstairs. He stood up and could see the yard below from the window. It was Xu Chong who brought people and carts to bring in the bodies collected from the street early in the morning. The bodies were covered with cloth, and a total of five bodies were placed in the yard. The coroner was drawing water from the well in the yard to wipe the bodies.
Shen Kuo thought it was a bit noisy, so he closed the window on this side. He studied it alone for a while, but still couldn't open it. He thought, why not cut it open with a saw, or glue it shut? Just as he was thinking about it, he heard the ringing of the law bell on the street, and hurried to the window facing the street to see. But he saw that it was Li Cheng'an who came with a few apprentices. They didn't hide it and came in the street ringing the law bell.
It was not easy for Lao Bao to get this new place, and he always reminded people to keep a low profile, so everyone came in and out in plain clothes. Only this old Taoist came in so openly.
When the old Taoist came in and saw the corpse in the courtyard, he told several of his disciples to circle the corpse, ring bells and chant incantations to pray for the soul to be reborn.
The Taoists' ritual of salvation was no quieter than that of the novice monks. They also played cymbals, gongs, and rattles, which made it impossible for Shen Kuo upstairs to concentrate on dismantling the puppet.
Taoist priest Li Cheng'an himself did not participate in the ritual, but just stood in the courtyard and chatted with Xu Chong. Suddenly, they talked about a puppet that fell from the sky last night and was now on the second floor attic. He was horrified and shouted "Oh no!" and hurried up. Xu Chong did not know what was going on, so he followed him up.
When I came up, I saw a puppet lying on the table.
"Oh, you are so foolish, why did you leave this evil thing behind?"
The old Taoist said with great sorrow.
"I just want to take it apart and see what's inside."
"This is a heavenly evil spirit. It is dormant for a while because the Yang energy is strong during the day, but it is not really dead. I felt a surge of evil energy downstairs. We must not let it stay, we must not let it stay."
As the old Taoist said this, he looked around as if he was looking for something, and at a glance he saw several peach trees in the yard.
"I will order my disciples to cut down the southern branches of a peach tree, chop them into firewood, pile them up and burn them, and this will put an end to the trouble from now on."
"Master, listen to me. This thing cannot be burned. It must be kept as evidence."
"How can this evil thing be used as evidence?"
"How can it not be done? It's just a piece of wood."
"It's not moving now, not because it's dead, but because it's suppressed by the sunlight. When night comes, the strong energy weakens and the negative energy gathers, it will be hard to say what will happen." The old Taoist said sternly.
Shen Kuo realized that he could not compete with Li Cheng'an within his theoretical framework, so he had to bring up Lao Bao for this matter.
"Master, this matter still needs to be carefully considered. Mr. Bao has told me that if I damage this thing by even a fraction, I will be held responsible for the conspiracy. The responsibility is all on me, so please forgive me, Master."
Lao Bao never said that destroying this puppet would be equivalent to being an accomplice, but he couldn't care less at this moment, so he might as well use Lao Bao's skin to scare him.
"Alas... Bao Longtu has no respect for ghosts and gods, and doesn't know how high the heaven is and how deep the earth is," Li Cheng'an said with a sigh, "Well, I will go to Master Zhang to tell him about this, but I'm afraid it won't be possible today. My master is still in Yuqing Zhaoying Palace to comprehend the heavenly book. I will wait until tomorrow or the day after tomorrow to invite Master to discuss this matter in front of me. I will definitely not let Cunzhong be involved."
"Thank you, Taoist Priest."
Shen Kuo breathed a sigh of relief.
"However, if we keep it like this, I'm afraid that the aura will dissipate , and the ghost will return to its place and make trouble. I left seven talismans to suppress it first, so that it won't stir at night."
Without waiting for Shen Kuo to speak, Taoist Li leaned out of the window and called his disciples. These disciples still had their belongings with them, and took out yellow paper and cinnabar on the spot. The Taoist sealed the box and prayed on the spot, then stepped on the magic circle, and finally wrote a few spells with a cinnabar pen and pasted them on the forehead, back of the head, chest, back, and limbs of the puppet. Still feeling uneasy, he ordered Xu Chong to find an iron chain to lock the puppet up, and added another lock, and took a yellow candle that he carried with him and burned it on the lock. Shen Kuo couldn't understand what kind of magic was cast. The Taoist kept the key to the lock with him, and didn't leave it to Shen Kuo.
After finishing all this, the old Taoist took his apprentice and was about to leave, probably to Yuqing Palace to seek justice from Master Zhang. When they reached the stairs, he turned back and reminded that although there were seven spells on the puppet to seal its soul, it must not be dropped. Especially the one on the forehead, which closed the top of the head, where the ghost entered and exited, and was extremely important.
After saying these words, the old Taoist left in a hurry.
After this operation, Shen Kuo was dumbfounded. He originally thought that he had saved this important evidence, but he saw that it was entangled by the iron chain and could not be disassembled.
Xu Chong seemed relieved. Although he didn't say it clearly, he had always been afraid that the puppet would be resurrected. Now, even if it was resurrected, it would be tied up with chains. At least it would have time to escape. He felt relieved and went downstairs to talk to the coroner, leaving Shen Kuo alone to cry.
Shen Kuo circled the puppet seven or eight times, but he had no idea what to do. He had to take out the broken pieces of the candlelight lamp and try to reverse the burned part. However, although he got the flower-blooming hairpin, it seemed that he had solved the problem of the blooming hibiscus in the painting. But even if there was such a mechanism hidden inside, the flower only opened in the lamp, so how could it be reflected on the screen? In addition, Huailiang did not explain clearly what the faint thunder sound when the witch appeared was like, which was emitted by the whistle under her tongue.
